Quetiapine and Weight Gain: What Users Say

• Mol...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 28, 2019

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "This medication has saved my life. I was having the worst episodes ever: high, low, high, low, no sleep, totally impulsive, on the downward spiral to self-destruction. Spending money, running around town at all hours, telling off people at work... then the crash. Sobbing in my doctor's office, she wrote the script for Seroquel. I had zero faith because all the antidepressants, etc., she'd tried me on never worked to calm the chaos/PTSD reactivity in my head. I was ready to end it all. Thank goodness I filled the script and took it. I slept! That in itself is a miracle. I kept my job, and I'm hopefully on a journey to wellness. My mind is calmer. I can think one thing after another in a logical order instead of a cloud of white noise and traumatic memories flashing. I think with this med and some good PTSD therapy, I might have a second chance... at life. I don't care if I gain a little weight... I want to live without constant chaos. So grateful."

• You...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 10, 2021

For Insomnia "This medication was prescribed after I tapered off of Klonopin and could not sleep. I had weight gain at first but only because the doctor had me taking 200 mg. I tapered down to 25 mg and lost all the weight and still slept great. In fact, I felt much better on the lower dose and slept deeper. I had nightmares and sleep paralysis at the higher dose. It also helped my anxiety without feeling groggy the day after. I even take a half of the 25 mg to help soothe my anxiety. It’s been a game changer for me."

• Mrm...
• August 29, 2019

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Schizophrenia "This drug has really helped me with the voices and the paranoia. I have been on it for nearly 3 years. I have been on pretty much every antipsychotic there is and have been dealing with this illness for a long, long time. The downside is that you will gain weight. I have lost some of it by reducing calories and taking metformin. Walking seems to help too. If you do take this one, stay as active as you can to avoid diabetes because as my psychiatrist told me 'It will happen eventually'. Also, I adopted a vegetarian diet to help lower other risks with this one. The other downside is that it can make you very tired. I take 400mg at night and 75mg in the morning and another 75mg in the afternoon. I still hear voices and don't want to be around other people but it is much more manageable and I can at least have some kind of life. To be honest, I probably would have killed myself if it were not for this drug. I am surprised I even wrote this as I am a very paranoid person."

• Cof...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 14, 2021

For Insomnia "Seroquel saved my life. Due to PTSD, I have had insomnia for over 7 years. It was so bad, I felt crazy and unstable. I contemplated suicide daily, and I couldn't function. I was finally able to sleep with Seroquel after trying everything else. Unfortunately, it made me gain a lot of weight, and I have very irregular periods. I don't want to continue long-term, but it does help me sleep at night. I could not function without it."

• Sad...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 6, 2021

For Insomnia "I have been taking the generic Seroquel for 3 months. I am up to a 50mg dose at night. It does make you have very vivid dreams, some scary lifelike, and I am a zombie most of the day. I get up maybe once and try to eat everything in the house too. Gaining weight!! I wonder if that will go away? Any thoughts on that? I do also take Klonopin and Effexor for panic attacks and depression. My doctor put me on the Seroquel for a mood stabilizer and sleep too. My mother took Seroquel XR for years. Her doctor took her off it because it made her a diabetic. She had a lot of trouble sleeping for months. I take the tablets only. Good luck to everyone."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 10 years or more
• June 5, 2020

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "Whatever your condition, from my experience do not start taking this drug quetiapine. I speak from experience with bipolar, major depression, and anxiety. The side effects are far worse than any benefits. The only benefit I have found is some help with sleep, but even that is inconsistent and sometimes my overall sleep is much worse (fewer hours). It causes massive weight gain over time and dependency. Once you take it, you feel like you won't be able to sleep without it. I have been on it for years and have been unable to get off it, even though at this point I am on a low dose of 25 mg when I used to be on a high dose."

• kas...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 3, 2021

For Insomnia "I used to have really bad insomnia. I don't know the cause, but it made me sleep 7 hours in the span of three days. My mind was like a radio, nonstop playing and talking. When I took Seroquel for my bipolar disorder, I was super drowsy, and I could not wake up during the day. I started with 25 mg, but I noticed that I was getting sleep. Over time, I had to increase my dose to 300 mg to get good sleep. My body always gets used to meds, and I ended up increasing every time. I found that 300 mg was good to give me 8 or 9 hours of sleep at night. If I take it early, I can wake up early and feel well-rested for the next day. I noticed that if I need to wake up sooner, I lower my dose to 200 mg. The only downside to this medication is the weight gain. I would wake up in the middle of the night hungry and thirsty. I spoke with my doctor and tried Trazodone and Temazepam, but none worked better compared to Seroquel. Still a lifesaver."

• Max...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 4, 2019

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "I have bipolar mania with stages of depression. It has been like this since I was very young. It comes along with episodes of mood swings. I am on 25 mg of Seroquel now and have been on both 50 mg and 100 mg. 25 mg does great things for me. No more sleepless nights. No more intense spending sprees. No more major anxiety most of the time. A lot less depression and a lot less irritability I experienced as well. I get tired and a little unmotivated in the morning, but I have coffee and breakfast and I'm good. Weight gain is the other concern but I have controlled it with walking good amounts each day. Well worth a try and definitely something to consider for a bipolar patient."

• Ann...
• August 30, 2013

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "I too gained masses of weight taking Seroquel but lost it all (35lb) in 6 months by healthy eating & being AWARE of the pitfalls. Seroquel does not make you gain weight. Seroquel makes you crazy HUNGRY craving all the bad stuff - salt/sugar/fried food for me. The secret is to ANTICIPATE your munchies. Prepare a large but healthy snack in advance or save half your evening meal and have it at bedtime just before you take your meds. This really worked for me. Taking my meds on a full stomach took the cravings away."

• amb...
• December 2, 2015

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "I have never left a review on a medication before in my life, but after a year on this med, I felt I had to. I am a 32-year-old female who has suffered with anxiety and panic disorder/agoraphobia my whole life. It got so bad that I dropped out of grad school a few years ago and was completely housebound with panic and derealization, and I was fainting from the attacks in public! No medicine ever worked for me until I tried Seroquel. Hands down, it gave me my life back. I can drive, I can go to my kids' school and functions alone, I can socialize again. I feel totally free! I was SO scared of starting this drug but it has been my lifeline! The ONLY downside has been the weight gain-- 15 lbs that won't budge :("

• Ing...
• December 1, 2016

For Borderline Personality Disorder "My daughter was prescribed this dreadful drug by a supposedly consultant psychiatrist. Her weight doubled in just over a year. This drug gives you suicidal thoughts and my daughter committed suicide on 16th November 2016. Reading her suicide note was heartbreaking. The Seroquel never helped her in any way so she tried to come off them, and the withdrawal effects were horrendous. I believe that her mental condition got worse when she was on this drug. I would never recommend this medication to anyone. I live in the UK."

• tiz...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 3, 2020

For Insomnia "Up until my gastric sleeve surgery in 2012, sleep was never an issue for me. If anything, I slept too much. Fast forward to 2020 and for the last 8 years I have suffered horrible to mild insomnia and even on a good night, I may get 5 hours of sleep. I have tried all the common sleeping scripts out there along with some pretty serious anti-anxiety drugs, which ended with pretty bad results (a week in the hospital). In February of this year, I went in for my normal physical, except my normal doctor had left the practice and the new doc filling in for her was the one I got to see. I explained all that I wrote above, and she reviewed my chart. She asked if anyone had ever suggested Quetiapine, which they hadn't. I'm currently on day 61 of taking 50mg a night with 7-9 hours a night being the new norm. I'm so thankful this wonderful doctor came into my life. I'm not sure if any other doctor would have even considered this drug. So far no adverse side effects or weight gain. :)"

• Lan...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 3, 2020

Seroquel (quetiapine) "This Seroquel has so far been a game changer for me. I am a 25-year-old female, roughly 55 kg, insomnia sufferer. I usually have very broken and inconsistent sleeping patterns. I came to the conclusion that I probably needed sleep assistance after years of issues. I take 50 mg at night around 11-12, and it knocks me out within half an hour. Don’t make the mistake of staying up on your phone or doing other things because you will end up staying awake in a daze raiding the fridge. Take it when you are ready to switch off and go to bed. I have noticed I wake up ravenous, so I do cardio and caffeine in the morning to avoid weight gain. I can see how easy it could be to gain weight on this drug. Overall, it works well for me. I could probably be getting away with 25 mg instead of 50 mg, but I have such sleep anxiety that 50 mg is my safe amount that I know will knock me out without overthinking."

• Pol...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 3, 2020

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "This drug absolutely did not work for me. Well, the sleeping part worked... I never slept so much in my life. Instead of waking up from 12 hours of sleep feeling well-rested, I woke up angry and wanting to punch someone in the face. Sure, I can have anger outbursts, but only while on Seroquel did I want to punch someone. Started low at 25mg, and my doctor kept increasing my dosage to 100mg. At 100mg, I would sleep 18 hours straight, and my days and nights were blurred. The anger caused me great urges to drink alcohol, which is ironic because I don't even like alcohol. Eventually, I just stopped cold turkey, and to this day, I have never woken up as miserable as I was on Seroquel. Also, I gained 60 pounds in a little over 2 months and had severe impotence. So definitely not for me."

• CMa...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 1, 2020

For Borderline Personality Disorder "I have been on Seroquel for 5 years now. I began at 100mg and just recently moved to 200mg. Prior to Seroquel, my BPD symptoms were out of control. I was misdiagnosed many times over my lifetime and have been given countless drugs for depression and anxiety, which either did not work or made things worse. Since being on Seroquel, my life has completely turned around. I feel totally in control of my thoughts, emotions, and actions. I feel rational and sane, have impulse control, have been able to hold down a job and maintained a nice lifestyle and marriage for the entire time, which I was never able to do before. I take it at bedtime, it's the ONLY thing that helps me sleep at night, I wake in the morning feeling rested and alert. I do struggle with being overweight by about 40lbs, but the benefits far outweigh the weight side effect for me."

• Squ...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 25, 2019

For Insomnia "My insomnia is genetic as everyone in my family seems to have it, but I have no other diagnosis as to why. We sleep very heavily 2 hours at a time with periods of being awake 1-3 hours in between, which makes working hard as we often only get 2-4 hours of sleep a night. After being tried on many different over-the-counter and prescription drugs which either did not work or had to have the dose increased every few weeks, my doctor suggested this. I have been taking this for insomnia for 3 years. Unlike other medicines, I have never had to increase my dose, and the only adverse side effect I noticed was some weight gain. I take less than the clinical dose for many depressed patients as I take only 25 mg a night an hour before bed. This was my miracle! After 2-3 years of 2-4 hours of sleep a night, I was beginning to literally lose my mind due to lack of sleep. I now sleep 6-8 hours straight every night, with occasional bathroom trips."

• Oca...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 14, 2020

For Depression "I am bipolar one and I am primarily always in the depressed phase. I cannot take any depressants because they make me worse, kind of feel like I'm in a hole if that makes sense. I take 200 mg of instant-release Seroquel, 100 mg at about 7:30 in the evening and the other 100 about 11:00 p.m. I sleep wonderfully, and it has tremendously made an impact on my depression. I guess I am very lucky. I did a lot of research on why the weight gain happens, and I read that it could be caused by insulin resistance. I take 2,000 mg of Ceylon cinnamon and also 5,000 mg of vitamin D3 and magnesium. I have not gained a pound. Please Google this, especially the vitamin D for antipsychotic side effects. Good luck!"

• EpG...
• February 13, 2021

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "Seroquel has been nothing short of a miracle for my depression, anxiety, sleep, and mood. I take 800 mg at night around 10 pm, and it has helped me in ways I couldn’t have imagined. The side effect of weight gain has been significant, but I’ll gladly take the trade of being fat."

• kay...
• November 14, 2014

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "I love Seroquel but not the XR type. Helps you to sleep well at night and wake up feeling great. Gives you major munchies at night and woke up with Reese's Pieces all over the bed. Does help with a lot on highs and lows. So for me it's worth a little weight gain. Overall this medicine has changed my life."

• Dru...
• February 15, 2020

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Schizoaffective Disorder "Seroquel knocked me out so badly that I slept 18 hours. The heavy sedation effect does go away, though. It did not help at all with my schizophrenia, but it did make me put on a lot of weight. Altogether, antipsychotics have made me put on a ton of weight. I've tried many of them, and I used to weigh 160 pounds and now I am 220. So far, that's all these drugs have done to me, they should be called fat pills."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 6, 2013

Seroquel XR (quetiapine) for Depression "I have had depression since I was a child, but I didn't start getting help for it until I was 19. I have tried Prozac and Celexa, which did nothing for me, and then my doctor asked me if I have ever heard of a medicine called Seroquel XR. I started out on 50mg and then worked my way up to 300mg. The only side effects for me were weight gain and drowsiness, but the drowsiness went away after a couple of months of using this medicine. Overall, I really like this medicine. It has helped me tremendously!"

• Cla...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• October 6, 2019

For Insomnia "I don't know what I would do without Seroquel for sleep. I have bipolar 1 and have not had an episode in about 5 years, which I attribute to taking Seroquel for sleep and having a bit of lithium in my system, along with a low dose of Ritalin in the morning for depression. I take 25 mg of Seroquel to sleep at night, I know most people need more. I only sleep about 2-3 hours at night without it. I have gained and lost about 10 lbs on it. If I take it before going straight to bed, I get a serious case of the munchies. Just take it and try to get right to bed and don't fight the med and eat. It takes about an hour for the Seroquel to digest for me. If I am really restless, I take 50 mg to sleep and it makes me feel drowsy in the morning."

• lis...
• July 18, 2016

Seroquel (quetiapine) for Bipolar Disorder "When I was first put on this medication in the emergency room, I was coming off heroin, and my mood swings were horrific, and my anxiety was off the charts. They put me on 200 mg immediately and told me to take it 3 times a day. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, PTSD, severe anxiety disorder, hearing voices telling me to kill myself, sleep disorder, among a few others. I have loved this medicine since day one almost 4 years ago. I have ended up 150 lbs. overweight and diabetic. However one may see this, I call this my miracle pill. I wish I had been put on it as a teenager. I have told my psychiatrist not to ever try to take this away from me, I get paranoid thinking about it. I may be fat and diabetic, but I have a good life and a great family."

• bas...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 2, 2014

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "I was diagnosed with severe generalized anxiety, mood instability, and had pretty bad insomnia, where I would wake up mid-sleep approximately 4 times a night. I've taken Cipralex (20mg) for a year, and I've been on Seroquel (25mg) for about 5 months, and I find that I'm able to think more clearly and act less impulsively. With my anxiety, the physical symptoms have decreased quite a bit, though mentally, I am in control of my thoughts. As for sleep, I sleep a solid 8 hours a night, usually undisturbed. I did experience a bit of weight gain though (10-20 pounds)."

• MrT...
• July 14, 2018

For Generalized Anxiety Disorder "This medicine gave me my life back, by actually controlling anxiety both physically and mentally. For me the only side effects have been weight gain and heartburn, both of which I will gladly take for the freedom it has given me from my anxiety. No more panic, no more worry, no more racing thoughts, and I can think clearly and logically again. It does not make me sleepy like my doctor said it might, but instead just relaxes me enough that sleeping is possible once again. The nighttime need for snacking is kind of annoying, but I'll take it and the freedom this medicine has given me over the crippling anxiety!"